Chapter Two

I swallowed hard and allowed Cooper to steer me to my office.

“Sit,” he commanded, once the door was closed behind him.

I sank into my desk chair and set my coffee down on the table. Somewhere along the way, as he’d steered me down the corridors to my office, frustration had won out over the other emotions, and as I gripped the arms of my desk chair, rage was all I could feel pulsing through my veins. He was treating me like a dog on a leash, dragging me down the hallways like that. Where did he get the idea that I was his property?

By the time he opened his mouth, I was ready to go to war.

“What was that all about?” he asked. His jaw twitched as he waited for my answer.

“I went to get a coffee. I didn’t realize I needed your permission for that.” My teeth were clenched and my fingers dug into the leather even deeper.

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Then ask me more specifically. I swear, Cooper, you need to take some sort of etiquette class. Then again, I’m not sure that even Emily Post herself could help you.”

Cooper smiled and it sent a chill down my spine. “Charming,” he said.

I offered him my own strained smile and then unclenched one of my fists long enough to take a sip of coffee. “You were saying?”

“Allison, don’t push me. I’m in no mood.”

I sighed and set the cup back down, harder than intended and some of the precious liquid splashed out the top. “What do you want?”

“What was Parker talking about? What’s happening tonight?”

“That’s really none of your business.”

He leaned forward, bracing both of his hands on my desk as he stared down at me. I did my best to not flinch under his harsh glare.

“You are my business.”

I rolled my eyes. “Cooper, unless this is about work, I really don’t want to talk about it. Now, you said you were coming to see me, so why don’t we talk about that.”

The anger in Cooper’s eyes was practically radiating from his body as he hovered over me. I did my best to choke back my anxiety, and met his stare with my own intensity. He needed to know that I wasn’t a plaything that he could just use and toss away any time he wanted. If there was ever a relationship that needed boundaries, this was it. But, at the same time, somewhere in my core, I wanted him and pushing his limits was turning me on. No one had ever gotten this crazy jealous…possessive…of me and it was both startling and intoxicating.

“Answer my question and we can talk about whatever you want,” he said.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, Cooper. He asked me to dinner, okay? Are you happy?” I sat back, waiting for him to blow up, but there was something that happened in his eyes. A shift.

“And you agreed to this invitation?”

“No, I did not,” I said. Technically, my answer was true. I hadn’t said yes or no. I hadn’t really wanted to go on the date, but at the same time, I needed to send a message to Cooper and going out with Parker might be just the thing.

Just as quickly as his anger had sparked, it seemed to dissipate. He straightened and smoothed his jacket. “All right.”

I watched his transformation in complete awe and confusion. In some sick way, I almost preferred him a little on the edge. His sudden coolness was unsettling. I was tempted to bring up his weekend whereabouts with the actress just to rile him back up again, but decided to keep that card in my hand for a while longer.

“So? What did you need to talk to me about?” I prompted.

My frustration was stifled and the desire for him was starting to creep back in as my eyes wandered over his squared shoulders. His jacket was cut perfectly to show off his broad, muscled frame. His large hands smoothed over his tie and my pulse quickened, thinking of his fingers and all the wonderfully exquisite things they were capable of.

Ugh. I shifted in my chair as pressure started to build between my thighs.

I needed to get him out of my office before I did something stupid. Again.

“I wanted to check on your progress. I had an afternoon meeting Friday and was unable to stop by before I had to leave,” he said. His face was all business, but I noted his eyes wandering down the line of my shirt, spending a moment longer than necessary on the place where the shirt buttoned together, over my full chest.

“Here,” I said, passing him a stack of papers. It was the spreadsheet I’d started working on the week before. Cooper had tasked me with compiling information about a competitor and the ingredients used in their products. In truth, he’d asked me to hack in their systems and pull information, but I hadn’t pulled the trigger on that particular aspect of the project just yet.

Cooper studied the paper, a slight wrinkle between his furled brows.

“Good work. Very organized.” He handed the copies back and stepped towards the door, apparently ready to leave.

My chest clenched, suddenly not wanting him to go. I was still mad as hell at him, and had a thousand non-work-related questions that I needed answers to, but as I sat there before him, all I wanted was for him to take me into his strong arms and kiss me till I couldn’t think about anything else.

I shook my head slightly, my headache still numbly pulsing at my temples.

I needed to get a grip.

“I have a meeting,” he said.

“Break a leg…or whatever it is you corporate drones say for such an occasion,” I said, offering a smile to him.

He hesitated, and I had a beat of hope that he would stay and apologize for being such an ass. I raised my eyebrows at him, expectantly.

“And Allison, remember, it wouldn’t look good to fraternize too much with Parker. People will talk,” he said.

By the time my shock cleared, and the “fuck you” had bubbled to the surface, he was gone.

“Ugh!” I groaned and lay my head back down on the desk, as soon as his form had disappeared from my sight.

He was playing with me…and I wouldn’t have it.

Not anymore. Not after what he’d done.

I picked up my head and grabbed the phone off my desk. It took me a moment of searching through the digital database, but I found it.

Parker answered on the third ring. “This is Parker Lee.”

“Hi, Parker, it’s Allison.”

“Allison! Hello,” he said. I could hear the smile in his voice.

“Are you still free for that dinner?”

“Yes, yes I am. I can pick you up at seven?”

“Sounds great. See you then.”

I set the phone back to the base and felt a flutter of anxiety.

What had I just done?

Parker arrived at my apartment at seven on the dot. I had emailed him directions after lunch. Knowing what was coming had put my stomach in knots all day. It wasn’t that I was actually interested in Parker, but more so, the jealousy that Cooper would feel if he were to hear through the office grapevine that I’d taken Parker up on his offer. All afternoon I had cycled through the different outcomes that were possible from accepting the invitation and nearly all of them ended in a huge, blow-up argument with Cooper.

I knew that I should feel bad, but as I strapped on my new high heels, I was almost looking forward to it.

Cooper had broken my heart and my trust and he needed to be taught a lesson.

Besides, Parker was a nice enough guy—and it was just dinner. One little dinner. Nothing more.

“Hi,” I greeted him as I opened the front door. “Let me just grab my purse.”

Parker waited on the doorstep for me, and then ushered me down to his waiting car. It was some fancy import that probably went faster than was legal in any state, but it sure was pretty. Surprisingly, he also knew how to handle such a beastly car. Then again, I guessed from what little information I had, that he’d been born wealthy and probably had always had nice cars to drive.

Must have been nice. I sighed to myself.

“Ready?” Parker asked once we pulled up to the valet of a very posh-looking restaurant.

I nodded and glued a perma-smile to my face.

He handed off the keys and came around to escort me inside. I placed my arm on his and it felt weird. Parker had a similar build to Cooper, but for whatever reason, even just holding his arm felt completely different and I was grateful when our host seated us on opposite ends of a small table for two in the center of the restaurant. I glanced around, and realized that this was the perfect place to be seated when you wanted to see and be seen. I considered Parker and realized he probably was that kind of guy.

Somewhere in the back of my mind I felt a little guilty for pre-judging so much about the guy across from me, but for some reason, I couldn’t turn off my own critical eye.

Once Parker had placed an order for a bottle of wine and some kind of fancy appetizer, he turned his attention back to me. “You know, this almost didn’t happen tonight.”

My brow wrinkled at his odd statement. “What do you mean?”

“Cooper came to see me—after he’d left your office, I’m assuming.”

I sucked in my breath and gripped the cloth napkin draped across my lap.

“He told me, in no uncertain terms, that I was not allowed to have anything to do with you. Outside of the office, that is.”

I couldn’t breathe. A strange mix of terror and anger wrapped around my lungs, making it impossible to exhale.

Parker laughed softly and reached a hand across the table towards my hand. “It’s all right. I’ve known Cooper for a long time now. He’s a lot of hot air, if you ask me.”

It might be true that Parker had known him longer, but I would argue that by now, I might have a more complete picture of who he actually was. Which seemed ridiculous, considering how little I actually knew about my mysterious, sometimes lover.

“Did he say anything else?” I asked, trying to keep my voice casual, before taking a sip of wine.

“No. He’s weird sometimes. It’s not like no one has ever dated in the office before.” Parker paused and took a sip of his own wine. “I mean, you guys didn’t have a thing or something, did you?”

I almost spit out my mouthful of wine.

Alarm bells were ringing in my head and I wanted to get up and bolt from the restaurant. My eyes darted around the restaurant, as if expecting Cooper to pop up from one of the surrounding tables and yell, “aha!”

He held up a hand before I could speak. “Sorry, totally inappropriate. This isn’t the time to open the ex-files. Let’s talk about something else.”

“Um, aren’t you worried that he’s going to get mad? I mean, couldn’t he fire you?”

Parker shrugged. “I doubt it. Brighton Enterprises is a little too…fragile…for that right now. Like it or not, Cooper needs me. Besides, we go way back.”

I tried to feel as relaxed as Parker looked, but I couldn’t unwind the panic seizing in my chest.

“Enough about all that,” Parker said. “So, you said you were from Kansas. Did I tell you that I went there once?”

I shook my head and he launched into some story of a road trip from hell that ended in a family reunion that made the road trip seem like a vacation. His story was quite animated, and I was sure that under other circumstances, I would have found the entire thing quite charming. As it was, all I could muster was feigned interest while the majority of my brain reeled, trying to keep it together so I didn’t have a panic attack in the middle of the restaurant.

The rest of the so-called date passed in a blur of Parker’s overly self-indulgent stories about his life. By the time he pulled up to my apartment complex, I was relieved to be home so I could stop worrying about Cooper popping out from behind the bushes, but also to finally get some peace and quiet. Parker’s endless ramblings had made it impossible to fully analyze the situation at hand.

Parker unbuckled his seat belt and I looked over. “Let me walk you up.”

I wanted to say no, but figured it would be rude. Parker might have been mentally exhausting, but he was a nice guy and I didn’t want him to think I was a bitch.

He opened the car door for me and led the way back to my apartment. We hesitated outside my front door. I nervously jingled my keys, trying to figure out how to get him to go away.

He mis-read my cue and leaned into me. My whole body rattled with panic as I jolted back, hitting my back against the door frame. I could feel my eyes were popped wide open as I stared at him. Parker frowned and seemed confused. “Is something wrong?”

“No, no, everything was lovely. Thank you so much, Parker.” Before I could stop myself, I extended my hand out for him to shake.

He took my hand and squeezed before I turned and jammed the key into the lock on my front door. I disappeared inside and shut the door behind me.

I leaned back against the closed door and took in slow breaths to stop my racing heart.

God…things were going to be awkward at the office tomorrow.